MBTA fare hike proposal draws little response from riders

Only a few commuters expressed strong opposition to proposed MBTA fare increases at a public meeting held Wednesday night at Braintree Town Hall. It was the first of 10 public meetings the T has scheduled for the next two weeks as it seeks to increase fares across its services by an average of 5 percent.

BRAINTREE – Compared to two years ago, when angry commuters packed the Quincy High auditorium and berated MBTA officials over proposed fare hikes and service cuts, Braintree’s town hall auditorium seemed quiet and empty Wednesday night as T officials outlined their latest round of proposed fare increases.

The meeting, which drew only a handful of T riders, was the first of 10 public meetings the agency has scheduled for the next two weeks as it seeks to increase fares across its services by an average of 5 percent. The proposal does not include any service cuts – a major difference from the 2012 plan – and has drawn a far more muted response from commuters, though many are still upset about problems with T service and the prospect of having to pay more for their commute.

“I’m angry,” said Elena Kelley, a Quincy resident and one of three commuters at Wednesday’s meeting who said they were completely opposed to the fare increase. “I am angry because this is the second time in two years that the MBTA has threatened my livelihood by proposing an increase in the amount I’ll have to pay to get to and from my minimum-wage job.”

The T says the proposed fare increase, which would be its third in seven years, is part of a new strategy of seeking smaller fare hikes are regular intervals rather than putting increases off for years as operating costs mount. Transit planners believe the proposed changes would increase the T’s fare revenue by between $20 million and $24.5 million while cutting the number of rides on its system each year by between 2.8 million and 3.8 million.

Under the proposal, the T would increase adult fares on the subway and buses by 10 cents for those using a CharlieCard. Single-ride fares on the Hull and Hingham ferries would increase by 50 cents, while ferry passes would increase by $13. Commuter rail fares would increase by 10 to 25 cents, depending on the distance traveled.

Some riders said Wednesday that they would support a fare hike if it meant the T would improve bus or commuter line service, while others said they had seen no improvements in T service since 2012 – when the agency increased rates by an average of 23 percent – and didn’t think things would get better with this increase either.

Lorraine Grassey, another Quincy resident, said that of the 20 or more buses she takes each week, no more than five are ever on time.

“That’s a really bad way to plan my life,” she said.

Jonathan Davis, the T’s chief financial officer and deputy general manager, acknowledged that the T continues to have problems with operations and said the agency is making major capital investments that should make its services more reliable in the coming years. That includes $355 million the agency plans to spend on replacing buses and a separate contract for the replacement of a third of all Red Line trains, which Davis said he hopes to have signed by the end of the year. The T is also bringing 40 new diesel-electric commuter trains into service in the next year.

Page 2 of 2 - “We need to prove to you that we can deliver reliable, on-time service, and I hope you will stay with us while we improve the system,” he told the audience.

The T will accept written comments on the proposal through April 30. If approved, the proposed fares would go into effect July 1.